Cornelia T. Bailey Foundation Grant for NSU Library Writing Workshops

Serena Smith is an Adult Services Librarian in the Alvin Sherman Library’s Research and Information Technology Center. She received a $5,000 grant from the Cornelia T. Bailey (CTB) Foundation to support writing workshops for adults at the library.

 

Tell me about your recent grant-funded project.

This funding allows me to bring various topics to aspiring writers. Aspiring writers seek to learn how to craft a story for a non-academic audience. These workshops help beginners connect with published authors and resources in the writing community. Our guest authors present workshops on subjects of information they wished they knew as beginning writers, providing tips for beginning writers to start their books. These authors have worked in academia, the corporate world, non-profits, and government.

 

Who is working with you on this project?

Since 2015, I’ve run creative writing workshops for adults to support local writing organizations and writers by connecting beginner writers with published authors. These workshops teach skill-building, everyday business knowledge, publishing trends, and more. They also provide opportunities to network with published authors and learn more about local writing organizations.

Last year the 6th annual All Write event, a program in partnership with our local Florida Chapter of Mystery Writers of America, helped hone the skills of aspiring writers. The dedication of published authors, writing coaches, and literary agents to informing the community about the publishing industry make these workshops possible. I could not do this series without their commitment to our community and willingness to pay their success forward.

 

What advice do you have for other grant seekers at NSU?

NSU’s Grant Writing Manager, Melanie Bauer, gave me constructive feedback that I attribute to the success of my application. Let the Grant Writing Laboratory tear your proposals apart and follow Melanie’s advice to achieve a successfully funded project.

 

What is the next grant proposal or project on your agenda?

The next project will be a new roster of workshops for 2023-2024. I need to gather all the feedback from last year’s workshops to use for this year’s funding applications. In the future, I will look to the CTB Foundation and other funding providers for support for the continuation of workshops for writers and opportunities to interact with our local writing community.

 

Check out the Writing Workshop Resources Library Guide, https://nsufl.libguides.com/writers

2023 Upcoming Virtual Writing Workshops, https://nsufl.libguides.com/writing_workshops